Saturday, January 6, 2007

The Art of Bar Rotation

For decades, road bicycles were assembled using a set of rules that were standard in every bicycle shop and home work shop. These rules were understood as law and any mechanic worth their weight in beans respected and followed them. The brake lever position is a classic example of this. When mounting the brake lever on a pair of drop bars, the bottom of the lever was always positioned evenly with the lowest portion of the drop bar. Most mechanics utilize a straight edge (e.g., steel ruler, headset wrench) flat against the bar and lowered the lever until the bottom touches the flat edge. Tighten, done.

But in 1999-2000 riders began to roll the bars upwards, in essence, raising the location of the hoods. I have a few theories on why this was done.

In 1997, Shimano released the DA9 group and with it came the new standard for brake lever ergonomics. Shimano bulked up the hood giving it a wider, more comfortable feel and giving the end of the hood a rounder, taller profile. This increase in size gave the rider's hands more to hang onto and, during hard efforts, something to rest against and provide leverage. For the Spring Classics, the new hood design improved control and provided support on the pave.

In typical McCoy/Hatfield form, Campagnolo releases a complete revamp of the Record group in 2000. Like DA, Campy hoods recieved a make-over as well, bulking up like their DA counterparts. Absent though was the pronounced mass on the end of the hoods. Instead Campy focused on keeping it smaller and more nub-like. The new, rounder profile was a welcomed improvement over the older, pointed version. However, this difference in lever profile was the impetus for the trend of rotating the bars.

With the smaller nub on the end of the lever, the rider doesn't have the same leverage point on the lever under hard efforts or during the rough sections of pave. Enter the gradual rise of the levers position on the bars and the ever-increasing rotation of the bars. It seems that the rotation of the drops varies from 5-15 degrees and the higher position of the lever ranges from 2 mm to 1 cm above the bottom of the drops, thus bucking the traditional lever-bar relationship.

Another industry change that paralelled the new lever design was the advent of threaded headsets. Threadless systems removed the adjustability of the quill stem, eliminating the rider's option of 1-2 cm of height adjustability. Rotating the bars also increases the height of the hoods. The downside of this is that the drops also move further away from the rider.

The positional change is an easy fix for times when the rider needs an increase in bar height. The best example of this is Tyler Hamilton's bar rotation following his broken collar bone and the alterations in Floyd's 2006 Tour when his hip was causing him pain.

I'm a fan of the new bar position. The increased height of the hoods coupled with the rotation of the bar feels better on my wrists, and provides a noticable increase in the usefulness of the hoods when under a hard effort. Another bonus is the transition created between the shape of the bar and the hood itself. The added height makes the transition from bar to lever almost seemless depending on the type of bar the rider chooses.

I am a fan of the Newton Shallow drop bars and both Campy and Shimano work well with this bar. The two groups are noticeably different but the rotation of the bars has the same benefits. Thanks for reading.

After tilting 215's for years, Lance got Bonty to make him a pair that were build so that they were pre tilted. at least that they were flat from the tops to the hood and then smooth curved to the drop, all without tilting.

Are fingers getting longer too? I have a hard time of striking a balance between having higher hoods and being able to reach the leavers easily when in the drops. What's a bar model that people have used to accomodate shorter reach (even though my hands are reasonable large)?

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Belgium Knee Warmers Defined

For many professional cyclists the Spring campaign is the toughest of the season; it means training from October until March in the worst, character-building weather conditions Europe can dish out. This weather and the suffering that is bicycle racing breed characters known as "hardmen".

Select cyclists tackle these conditions in shorts, long sleeve jerseys or short sleeve jerseys with arm warmers, wind vests, and shoe covers. A true hardman opts to forego the knee or leg warmers and instead chooses an embrocation to cover the knees. The liniment provides warmth for the legs and keeps the blood circulating and muscles supple. Embrocation and the sheen created is affectionately known as "Belgium knee warmers". The hardest of cyclists will sport bare legs in the most ruthless of conditions.

Belgium Knee Warmers are indicitive of the many subtleties that make professional cycling so enthralling.

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I spent 20 years of my life working in the bicycle industry, turning wrenches and selling bikes for some of the industry's best shops. I have extensive experience designing and constructing frames in both steel and titanium and have performed thousands of bike fits. I am passionate about bicycles in all forms. The bicycle provides me with physical and mental health and taps me into a social pipeline that allows me to share my passion with others. I ride as often as possible and love the flow of a hard group ride. Check back for musings about all things road cycling and, especially, the Spring Classics. The devil is in the details and I am an expert in the useless minutia that makes up our discipline.